Activity at Greenham Common for Star Wars: Episode VIII commencing?

Our friend Ian got in touch with us today to let us know that there does seem to be activity going on at Greenham Common. He sent photos from Star Wars: The Force Awakens and also the activity going on now.

I was laughing at Mark Hamill last night who was obviously quite drunk pulling pints in some Kerry pub and you had the tag at the end about Greenham Common “movement”. Cue TFA flashbacks from a year ago. This morning I went up the road for a quick “jog” around the perimeter fence and there was indeed movement and uncharacteristic clanging noises that were reminiscent from a year ago.

The place was being stacked with what looked like lettered and numbered pallets and lots of scaffold was being moved around. Still, naysayers might say “they could be just doing some building work”, but by the rear entrance there were several Dickies trucks (no laughing at the company name) and their tagline is Moving Entertainment forward. The same trucks were there while TFA was going on. The obligatory containers were also present that I’m sure will be lifted into place at some point to obscure as much from the general public as possible and generally, there did seem to be a lot of silvery kit about – but it was still very much packaged up.

To fill you in, Newbury (where Greenham common is) has had two major productions shot here Star Wars and Downton Abbey. So, unless Lord and lady Grantham are investing the Downton cash into a nuclear bunker facility for the Christmas special I can’t see that it would be anything other than preparation for a new Star Wars film.

Sorry there’s not much to go on and these aren’t great photos from today – no Stormtroopers face down in a lake or grubby Rebels looking heroic – and they show quite literally nothing at all but it is some kind of confirmation that building has started on a new set at Greenham Common – if it is Star Wars though what planet are we on, who’s going to be there and what are they doing. More importantly will the British Weather behave when the day comes to start filming.

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Are these the first hints that Star Wars: Episode VIII will reuse the Greenham Common location? Star Wars: Rogue One is a possibility but less likely and Downton Abbey even less likely. Time will tell but the rumblings are starting and Ian shows it isn’t coming from nowhere.